The Ark

Attention! Spoiler ahead! This article contains plot information that may spoil major story aspects for the reader. Read at your own risk!

The Ark
Geographical Information
Location:	Mount Yamantau, Ural Mountains
Size:	Large Bunker
Political Information
Owning Party:	Cannibals
Conflicting Parties:	Aurora Crew (briefly)
Lore Information
Real-world Counterpart:	Mount Yamantau

The Ark, also referred to as the Yamantau Bunker, is a location in Metro Exodus. It's a massive underground bunker located beneath Mount Yamantau in the Urals. It serves as the main setting of the Yamantau chapter.

Overview

The Ark was originally intended as a shelter for the Russian government in the event of a nuclear attack. The bunker was still under construction when the bombs fell. Despite being a classified location, the NATO forces were apparently aware of it, as Yamantau was even more heavily bombed than Moscow, with the area remaining irradiated. Despite this, the bunker remained intact, though its communication antennas were damaged. The government never arrived, and the two thousand or so survivors in the bunker were mostly construction workers, with some communication officers, and at least 1 doctor. Due to the bunker still being under construction, however, the food reserves were not completely stocked. The survivors were soon forced to resort to cannibalism. After some of them sacrificed their lives getting out of the bunker, dying later of radiation poisoning, they managed to fix the antennas. While some wanted to contact other survivors in good faith and trade food in exchange for shelter, it was ultimately decided that the communication system would be used for a more sinister purpose; luring survivors to the bunker and then eating them. The area in front of the bunker came to be littered with the vehicles of people who fell for the broadcast and entered the bunker, never to return.

Role in Metro Exodus

Main article: Yamantau (Metro Exodus Level)

After fleeing Moscow following Anna and Artyom's discovery of the Hanza radio jammers, along with the subsequent destruction of a Hanza Cruiser train, Artyom found a looping broadcast from the Ark. Miller decided to head for the Ark in order to receive a pardon for their actions at the jamming facility, having previously been told by the Invisible Watchers that their orders came from there. After the Aurora crossed the Volga, Miller contacted the Ark directly, and was instructed by the Doctor, pretending to be a high ranking minister, to report to the bunker.

Upon reaching the area, Miller sent Krest, Idiot, and Sam ahead of the railcar to check for radiation around the bunker entrance because of the numerous craters surrounding the facility left by nuclear weapons. When they returned, Artyom, Anna, and Miller went with Idiot, Krest and Sam to the bunker entrance. Sam, Krest and Idiot stayed on the surface, while the others entered the Ark.

After entering the bunker, the rangers were assaulted by Cannibals and captured. The Doctor began threatening Miller and Artyom to have the rest of the Aurora crew enter the bunker, before taking Anna for a medical examination as he didn't like the sound of her cough. Sam and Idiot then engaged the Cannibals, freeing Artyom and Miller. Miller, Sam, and Idiot went to find the Cannibals leaders and see what intelligence the bunker contained, while Artyom went alone to find Anna and rescue her from the Doctor.

After rescuing Anna, they met up with the others in the bunker control room, where Miller had just finished executing the other Cannibal leaders while Idiot checked the bunker computer, finding that Caspian-1 had been active for several years after the war. Leaving the bunker, the remaining Cannibals attempted to kill them, but were gunned down in large numbers by the fleeing rangers, before the doors closed in front of the surviving cannibals, leaving them trapped inside forever.

Trivia

• Mount Yamantau and rumours about the possibility of an underground government facility located there actually first appeared in Beyond the Horizon, a novel from the Universe of Metro 2033 book series and part of Dyakov's trilogy. This may have been an inspiration for the location in Metro Exodus.
• As the Rangers mention, the bunker's layout is very similar to D6, complete with the spiral elevator in the center; the similarity helps them to navigate. The railroad leads straight to the bunker from Moscow, presumably as part of Metro 2.